Gold Prospecting in Australia: High-Tech or Old-School?

There seems to be no other mineral on Earth that has ever had such an influence on people such as gold does. Ever since its discovery, gold has been one of the most powerful things for the human being and it has always been associated with success, power, dignity and wealth. In time, middle-class people gained their access to the gorgeous shiny metal as well, but the truth is that gold will always continue to be associated with the elites of society. 

Even more, gold is a symbol of hope, especially in Australia. The Australian gold rushes were all about hope and about dreaming of a better life, ever since their very beginning. And, in one way or another, these gold rushes contributed majorly to the development of what we now know as Australia. If before gold there were only settlements, soon enough cities started to appear and the economy started to develop into the modern and well-shaped one we know today.

Gold-prospecting in Australia should be the same as a national sport, if you take into consideration the country’s relationship with the precious metals. And the truth is that gold prospecting in Australia did not actually die, but it transformed into something that is less of an actual “profession” and more of a hobby. 

The first extremely popular gold prospector was called Edward Hargraves and by the time he became famous in Australia, he had also gained the experience of the Californian gold rush. When he came back to the Australian land, he brought new techniques with him: cradling and paddling. For that age, these techniques helped a lot of people find large quantities of gold. 

Nowadays though, gold prospecting is not so much based on these “antique” techniques, but more on special made devices that can detect metal. Although both cradling and paddling are still used (especially for the fine “lumps” of gold), most of the experienced gold prospectors will use some sort of gold prospecting device to spot the “hot” areas before they actually paddle and cradle to find the yellow treasure.

Modern gold detectors are more advanced than you can even imagine them to be. They can be extremely efficient in detecting gold on a particular type of surface (such as a coarse surface, for example). Even more, some of them can work on multiple types of surfaces and all you will need to change from one “mode” to another will be pressing a button. As a matter of fact, these detectors are very, very easy to use in general and as long as you invest in a quality device, it is quite likely that you will enjoy it for many years to come.

All in all, modern Australian gold prospecting is neither about technology only, nor just about the old-school techniques, but somewhere in between. Experienced gold prospectors know all the tips and tricks and they know they should not simply “dismiss” older techniques because new ones appeared, simply because they are useful in their own way.